All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[Username taken]

Jaw drop

NEW: Virginia Republican lawmaker Tim Anderson just announced he is suing Barnes and Noble for selling books that promote LGBTQ rights. It is no longer just about banning books in schools—they are now coming for private businesses.


Seriously? Has he never heard about the 1st amendment?

VA delegate seeks restraining order against Barnes & Noble over ‘Gender Queer’

Im not surprised.

The GOP has pretty much thrived on driving up fear at minorities. Although anti-CRT, anti-trans nonsense is just that. Nonsense.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

I guess Musk has gone to the dark side.

Elon Musk called the woman who accused him of sexually harassing her flight-attendant friend a 'far left' actor 'with a major political axe to grind'

What a scumbag. Musk’s true colors have come to the fore with a vengeance.

[Gray Lensman]

What a scumbag. Musk’s true colors have come to the fore with a vengeance.

I agree. Musk doesn't seem to have "gone to the dark side" so much as the mask has fully slipped off, revealing he had been there all along.

[JackDaw]

I agree. Musk doesn't seem to have "gone to the dark side" so much as the mask has fully slipped off, revealing he had been there all along.

He’s obviously a clever guy.

But didn’t the mask fallen off years ago?

[Kevinroc]

He’s obviously a clever guy.

But didn’t the mask fallen off years ago?

I don't think Musk is all that clever. If anything, he's proven he's just another dumb rich man.

[Tami]

The Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is in Hungry worshiping Orban and Putin.

Here's why American conservatives are heading to Hungary for a big conference

It might seem strange that a nationalist conservative group identified with Donald Trump and America First is holding its annual meeting this week in Hungary.

CPAC, the Conservative Political Action Conference, is one of the biggest gatherings of conservatives in the world, and Budapest makes sense when you consider that this year's keynote speaker — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban — is a hero to some.

"Right now, the political leader of the conservative resistance in the West is the prime minister of a small central European [country] that most Americans never even think about," Rod Dreher of The American Conservative said at a conservatism conference last year.

Orban is one of Donald Trump's favorite foreign leaders

In 2019, Trump invited Orban to the Oval Office, a gesture the previous two U.S. presidents had avoided.

"Viktor Orban has done a tremendous job in so many different ways — highly respected, respected all over Europe — probably, like me, a little bit controversial, but that's OK," Trump said at the time.

Princeton sociologist Kim Scheppele, an expert on Hungarian politics, says Trump's relationship with Orban is different than the typical good relations an American president might have with a foreign leader.

"All of the international democracy rating agencies agree that Hungary is no longer a democracy. And the U.S. hasn't had a president be best buddies with a dictator before," Scheppele says.

Right now, both American conservatism and Hungarian politics are driven by cultural issues — like immigration, gender identity and abortion. And Scheppele says in Hungary, the culture wars are on the surface while the push for autocracy is just below.

"What Orban has really perfected is how to keep reelecting leaders whose aspirations are absolutely not to maintain a democracy, but rather the opposite: to lock in power forever to a small group of people. When you raise that question now in the United States, people don't automatically say that's a bad idea."

[Zauriel]

To Elon Musk
In the past you voted for the blue ruling class party and now you are voting for the red ruling class party. How did you ever find the courage to go from supporting one party that protects your interests to supporting the other party that also protects your interests?

[Mister Mets]

To Elon Musk
In the past you voted for the blue ruling class party and now you are voting for the red ruling class party. How did you ever find the courage to go from supporting one party that protects your interests to supporting the other party that also protects your interests?

A nightmare for both Democrats and Republicans would be if he followed in the footsteps of another E.M. (President Emmanuel Macron of France) and set up his own political party (Macron's was called La République En Marche!) supporting candidates for major office (Congress, statewide positions) with 50+ billion dollars rather than buying Twitter.

That could be a gamechanger.

[The Cool Thatguy]

A nightmare for both Democrats and Republicans would be if he followed in the footsteps of another E.M. (President Emmanuel Macron of France) and set up his own political party (Macron's was called La République En Marche!) supporting candidates for major office (Congress, statewide positions) with 50+ billion dollars rather than buying Twitter.

That could be a gamechanger.

If people liked Musk that much, sure.

But for better or worse, we don't have a lot of third parties in 'Merica

[WestPhillyPunisher]

A nightmare for both Democrats and Republicans would be if he followed in the footsteps of another E.M. (President Emmanuel Macron of France) and set up his own political party (Macron's was called La République En Marche!) supporting candidates for major office (Congress, statewide positions) with 50+ billion dollars rather than buying Twitter.

That could be a gamechanger.

You’re kidding, right? I doubt Musk would have the stomach, or the interest in launching a third political party, the only reason he’s courting the GQP at all is a shared distaste for unions and taxing the rich.

[Mister Mets]

If people liked Musk that much, sure.

But for better or worse, we don't have a lot of third parties in 'Merica

I think the current climate may be an opening.

One factor is the impression is the impression that some places are not hospitable to one of the major parties. A Musk-financed independent would likely have a better shot at a Senate seat in Kansas, Wyoming, Alabama or Alaska than any Democratic candidate. They could also outperform most Republicans in California, Vermont, Maryland or Illinois.

Given how narrow things are now (and the odds that Senate control will remain narrow regardless of who wins in November), a handful of Senators is quite meaningful. Eleven members of the House of Representatives would be enough to flip control in a coalition.

[Tami]

I think the current climate may be an opening.

One factor is the impression is the impression that some places are not hospitable to one of the major parties. A Musk-financed independent would likely have a better shot at a Senate seat in Kansas, Wyoming, Alabama or Alaska than any Democratic candidate. They could also outperform most Republicans in California, Vermont, Maryland or Illinois.

Given how narrow things are now (and the odds that Senate control will remain narrow regardless of who wins in November), a handful of Senators is quite meaningful. Eleven members of the House of Representatives would be enough to flip control in a coalition.

Here is a little History from the LOC: Creating the United States - Formation of Political Parties

Development of Political Factions and Parties

Opponents (Anti-Federalists) and supporters (Federalists) of the new constitution began to coalesce into political factions. In Virginia, Anti-Federalists led by Patrick Henry (1736–1799) defeated James Madisons election to the Senate and forced him into a campaign for the House of Representatives against a strong Anti-Federalist, James Monroe (1758–1831), later the fifth president. The rapid evolution of political parties from factions was an inventive American response to political conflict.

Support for Amendments as Political Diversion

Despite North Carolinas refusal to ratify the Constitution without the addition of amendments, the states governor, Samuel Johnston (1733–1816), opposed any material Alterations to the Constitution but advocated for a Flourish & Dressing . . . such as a pompous Declaration of Rights. Johnston was one of the many Federalists who supported amendments for personal liberties only as a political tactic to fend off more substantive changes in federal powers.

Location of Capital Spurs Partisan Bickering

In July 1790, Congress decided to move the capital of the federal government from New York to a new city to be built in the District of Columbia (created from parts of Maryland and Virginia) on the Potomac River, with a ten-year interim in Philadelphia. The location of the capital was part of a critical compromise over funding of national and state debts. The Compromise of 1790 became a focal point for the emerging Federalist and Republican parties. This print satires the profit opportunities presented by the traveling capital.

Partisan Clash over Creating National Bank

One of the early critical differences between Federalists and Republicans was a disagreement on the implied powers of the Constitution to allow for creation of a national bank. Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson advocated a narrow construction of the Constitution that would have prohibited a national bank. Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton supported the bank with a broad interpretation of the Constitutions implied powers under the general welfare clause. President Washington sided with Hamilton.

Washington Tries to Pacify the Parties

As party lines were drawn in the new federal government, President George Washington tried to pacify the parties by addressing the chief protagonists—Alexander Hamilton, his secretary of the treasury, and Thomas Jefferson, his secretary of state. Although both Hamilton and Jefferson promised to work together, the struggle between the Federalist and Republican parties continued unabated.

Republican Party Christened by James Madison

In September 1792, James Madison coined the term Republican Party in an essay, A Candid State of Parties, published in the National Gazette of Philadelphia. Although the Jeffersonian-Republican Party drew strength from the Anti-Federalists, no one had more claim to the authorship of the federal Constitution than did Madison, one of the founders of the Jeffersonian-Republican Party.

Congressman Declares Acts Unconstitutional

Virginia Congressman John Dawson (1762–1814) declared the Alien and Sedition Act an open violation of the First Amendment to the Constitution. Passed by the Federalist-controlled Congress as America prepared for possible war with France, the Alien and Sedition Acts limited free speech by declaring public criticism of government officials to be seditious libel, punishable by imprisonment and fines. Dawson urged citizens to rely first on the Courts to declare it unconstitutional, as well as to prepare to seek its repeal.

This is where it leaves off.

From Wikipedia: Political parties in the United States

First Party System: 1792–1824
The First Party System of the United States featured the "Federalist Party" and the "Anti-federalist Party" (which became known as the "Democratic-Republican Party" and was sometimes called "Jeffersonian Republican").

The Whig Party was formed in 1833 and collapsed in 1857 (24 years)

The Democratic Party was formed around 1824, after the breakup of the Democratic-Republican Party.

The Republican Party was officially formed in 1854 (though it's roots went back further).

Those are the only political parties in the US that have ever produced a President.

There are only four ways I can think of to form a new political party:

1. A President, elected as either a Republican or a Democrat, leaves that Party to start their own, taking those who are loyal enough to do the same along.
2. One of the Two Main Political Parties ceases to be, leaving a gap that is ready to be filed by another party.
3. One of the Two Main Political Parties split in half, creating a brief three party system until the dust settles and we see which ones are left standing.
4. A massive revolt by voters against both Political Parties, resulting in voting in a President who isn't aligned with either.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Here is a little History from the LOC: Creating the United States - Formation of Political Parties















This is where it leaves off.

From Wikipedia: Political parties in the United States



The Whig Party was formed in 1833 and collapsed in 1857 (24 years)

The Democratic Party was formed around 1824, after the breakup of the Democratic-Republican Party.

The Republican Party was officially formed in 1854 (though it's roots went back further).

Those are the only political parties in the US that have ever produced a President.

There are only four ways I can think of to form a new political party:

1. A President, elected as either a Republican or a Democrat, leaves that Party to start their own, taking those who are loyal enough to do the same along.
2. One of the Two Main Political Parties ceases to be, leaving a gap that is ready to be filed by another party.
3. One of the Two Main Political Parties split in half, creating a brief three party system until the dust settles and we see which ones are left standing.
4. A massive revolt by voters against both Political Parties, resulting in voting in a President who isn't aligned with either.

Trump, if memory serves, threatened to do option one because he didn’t feel like the GQP was kissing his ass hard enough and often enough. Predictably, the party quickly acquiesced and gave in to him since they needed the support of his fanatical followers. And the rest, as they say, was history.

[Tendrin]

KLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (KNWA/KFTA) - An Oklahoma Republican candidate running for a U.S. Senate seat has promised to disestablish reservations in the state if he is elected.

Alex Gray, a former staffer in the Trump White House administration, is seeking to fill the seat that will be vacated by 87-year-old Sen. Jim Inhofe’s upcoming retirement. Gray is one of ten Republicans running in the special election primary that will be held on June 28.

Gray voiced his views in a series of social media posts following a May 6 radio interview during which he made it clear that he planned to disestablish the reservations created by a Supreme Court of the United States ruling on his “very first day as a US Senator.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...071b43fb20e982

Like most Trumpians, he has a very poor idea of how these things work.

[Username taken]

I think the current climate may be an opening.

One factor is the impression is the impression that some places are not hospitable to one of the major parties. A Musk-financed independent would likely have a better shot at a Senate seat in Kansas, Wyoming, Alabama or Alaska than any Democratic candidate. They could also outperform most Republicans in California, Vermont, Maryland or Illinois.

Given how narrow things are now (and the odds that Senate control will remain narrow regardless of who wins in November), a handful of Senators is quite meaningful. Eleven members of the House of Representatives would be enough to flip control in a coalition.

I think he'll have a lot more impact by splitting the conservative vote in many areas a la Ross Perot.